Urban Greening Strategy

This is the City of Launceston’s first Urban Greening Strategy and sets out the City’s vision for a resilient, connected and diverse urban forest that will contribute to the health and wellbeing of our community and to the creation of a vibrant, liveable and sustainable city.

It is the product of a collaborative process, developed with many stakeholders including local academics, businesses, interest groups and the broader community.

This Strategy has been developed within the framework of the Greater Launceston Plan and the Launceston’s Strategic Plan, and alongside the City of Launceston Sustainability Strategy and Transport Strategy.

The City of Launceston’s Urban Greening Strategy replaces the Street Tree Strategy and shifts a focus from managing trees on an individual basis towards delivering a whole-of-forest approach, which encompasses trees and all other forms of vegetation, recognising that urban forests have economic, social and cultural benefits whilst conserving biodiversity, maintaining soil and water values and mitigating against heat impact and climate change.

Whilst Launceston is known for its leafy parks and significant trees, the urban forest that people enjoy today only covers around 19% of the urban area and lacks species diversity. This is below the national standard of 39%.

The Urban Greening Strategy sets out guiding principles that relate to urban greening that go beyond tree canopy and are as follows:

  • mitigate and adapt to climate change
  • reduce the urban heat island effect
  • transition to a water sensitive city
  • design for health and wellbeing
  • design for liveability and sustainability
  • create healthier ecosystems
  • design for heritage sensitivity

This strategy also delivers five key themes and targets for development of an urban forest, which includes not only tree canopy in the public and private domain, but also other forms of urban greening.

An action plan for urban greening will be further developed through an implementation plan and subordinate documents. It is also intended to indirectly guide other aspects of the Council operations, such as specifications and policies relating to green infrastructure, as well as development assessment and open space management, over time.

Download the Urban Greening Strategy(PDF, 8MB)

 

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